Asked by: Mark Sewards (Labour - Leeds South West and Morley)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that football stadiums are accessible to fans with disabilities.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The government recognises the great importance of sport and physical activity for disabled people at both the grassroots and elite levels.
The Government recently ratified the St Denis Convention. In doing so, we committed to providing an integrated safety, security and service approach at football matches and other sports events. The Sports Ground Safety Authority, one of DCMS’s arm's-length bodies, has begun a partnership with the Council of Europe to better understand and promote the ‘safety’ and ‘service’ element of the convention to the benefit of all fans.
We recognise there are barriers which exist and prevent some people from taking part and spectating. We expect all sports and all clubs to take the necessary action to fulfil their legal obligations under the Equality Act 2010 so that disabled people are not placed “at a substantial disadvantage” when accessing sports venues.